


Breaking of the Curse

by OT7nightmares



Category: Dreamcatcher (Korea Band)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-03
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:54:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 18,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22092883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OT7nightmares/pseuds/OT7nightmares
Summary: Inspired by the Deja Vu MV. Dreamcatcher receives a new bodyguard...only she isn't what she seems. Her introduction brings memories of a past life that could make or break their friendship. Thing is...this newcomer isn't just a bodyguard either, but someone who meant a lot to a certain Kim Yoohyeon. So what's to happen when these memories are revealed?This was originally posted by me on Tumblr, but my account was flagged so it's all getting transferred here
Relationships: Kim Minji | Jiu/OC
Kudos: 12





	1. Prologue

The Kim Kingdom was once one of the most prosperous monarchies of Southern Asia. For many years, the King and Queen ruled the domain with firm control, but not without allowing their people to prosper as well. Many people thought the King and Queen would eventually expand, conquering nearby lands, but they kept to themselves, trading with neighboring territories. Even when the kingdom was threatened, the monarchs defended their borders without ransacking and plundering those that were innocents trapped in the fighting. After years of prosperity, tragedy struck the kingdom. The King and Queen were assassinated during a festival for the new year. Luckily, the Princess, though only 16, was crowned the new leader and continued to successfully lead the kingdom. However, she wasn’t to rule alone. Her six closest friends became advisers after a few years of training by the advisers her parents had.

Years later, the Kingdom took a turn. It all began when a young boy, no more than eight years old, asked for solace in the castle. When the Princess caught wind of the presumably orphaned child, she felt sorry for him, but due to a recently harsh winter, she didn’t have the room to spare as her people were prioritizes. Thus, the young ruler had to turn the boy away. No one knew this boy was no ordinary child; he was a Demon that roamed the land as many of his kind often do. So, when he was turned away, the Demon knew just what to do.

Many citizens would later recall how suddenly their Princess changed. Even to her advisers, they all knew something wasn’t right with the Princess. When they would question her, she would get defensive and avoid answering their questions. After nearly a year, the hard work the King and Queen had done…was completely undone. The kingdom struggled, leading to civil unrest. That’s when the Princess sent her army to put a stop to the unrest. The army was led by three of her advisers, all Knights with the rank of General. There was the oldest of the group, Jiu, a kindhearted woman who many wouldn’t have thought would ever successfully be a knight. The second oldest, Siyeon, was just as kind as her elder, but often found herself fighting her way out of her problems. Many considered Siyeon a “hothead”. The last of the three, Dami, was the youngest knight to ever walk the Kim Kingdom. She was also the quietest of the Princess’ six advisers. Her span of knowledge was immense as she was often found reading in the library. If she wasn’t reading, she was helping Siyeon train the new recruits.

While the army was off handling the rising rebellion, the Princess was growing anxious. She knew what her people called her; knew her castle wouldn’t keep them out forever. As soon as she began to feel threatened, she called her forces back, fortifying the castle walls. It wasn’t long before she started to order the deaths of her people, assuming everyone was out to kill her. It was a curse of madness that drove the Princess to assume everyone was out for her life. Eventually, it went from paranoia of her people…to being paranoid that her advisers-her friends were plotting to overthrow her. This led the Princess to ordering her advisers’ deaths. One by one, her advisers were killed until only Jiu remained. The eldest adviser was no stranger to threats against her life. She knew how to avoid most methods of death, but even she eventually succumbed to death. Fortunately for the kingdom, the Knight was smart enough to fake her death and help the remaining members of the rebellion revolt against the Princess. Jiu was the one to enter the throne room to kill her former best friend, only the knight couldn’t do it. This prompts the Princess to promise her knight that she’ll change her ways and bring the kingdom back to prosperity. And she does…for a time.

The Princess proves she can change her kingdom’s fortune, but it doesn’t last as long as the people hoped. Even with the knight at her side, the Princess reverts to her other self, driving the kingdom even deeper into ruin than before. This forces Jiu to confront her friend again, questioning what’s wrong with the Princess. Again, she’s unable to kill her friend, leading her to turn and exit the throne room. She’s followed by the Princess, who’s spurred on by the curse. The Princess, black smoke appearing from the throne, consumes the knight’s sight, stopping her before she can even leave the throne room. With her sight blocked, the knight tries to reach for something familiar, but the pain that erupts from her chest causes her to touch the spot. Her sight returns in an explosion of color, but she’s too distracted by the warm liquid gushing between her fingers. Eyes seeing the glint of her sword, she follows the blade to her chest. All the knight can do is question her friend, never receiving an answer for why someone so pure and innocent could turn into something one can only describe as a demon.


	2. Part I

WatchDog Security is the world’s leading security firm in the business. They’ve provided protection for celebrities, politicians, priceless artifacts, and even the protection of private residences. With their hand in just about anything protection related, the company boasts a success rate of 98.8%. It even claims that all its personnel are given the deepest possible background checks and vetted by the top agencies of the world. There’s one bodyguard on their roster who is a mystery to the company, and an even bigger mystery to herself. Coincidentally, this guard is also one of their best and has recently been assigned to a new task. The task? Act as a temporary bodyguard for a Korean idol group known as Dreamcatcher.

Walking through the streets of Gang-nam, a woman doesn’t stand out, but an American woman with a powerful strut makes her presence known to those around her. She arrived in the country just a few hours ago and has the layout of the streets memorized. Her outfit is standard issue for WatchDog Security. She wears black pants, a black collared shirt with a red tie, and a black suit jacket. A pair of black combat boots are mostly hidden by her pants. She arrives at her destination, peering through the black tinted aviator sunglasses. Her eyes scan the building, noting that it appears as the picture in her case file.

_It’s just another assignment._ The woman huffs, blowing a stray strand of dark brown hair from her face. She angrily glares at it when it returns to its previously place. _A minor annoyance, great way to start the day._ She walks forward, following the sidewalk path to main doors of the building. Upon entry, she approaches the front desk upon seeing a secretary sitting behind it. The secretary looks up at the American’s approach.

“Good afternoon,” the secretary greets in Korean, small smile in place. “How may I help you?”

Nodding, the American pulls out her work ID. “I’m the guard sent from WatchDog,” she says, replying in Korean. Her American accent is evident, but her pronunciation shows fluency of the language.

The secretary nods, barely masking her surprise. “Please have a seat. The CEO will be out in a moment.”

Turning away, the dark-haired American takes her seat by the front doors. She puts her ID away, checking her watch at the same time. _Almost thirty minutes early as our policy states. Hopefully I won’t be made to wait lo-_ The elevator nearby dings. Looking up, the American stands when she sees the CEO step out and approach her. He holds a happy, yet relieved, smile. His hand is offered. She takes it, bowing instead of shaking it. The man quickly follows suit, bowing with her.

“Thank you for coming on such short notice,” he says. “My name is Lee Joo Won. I was informed you’re the best WatchDog has to offer?”

Nodding, the American straightens herself. “My name is Blair Bast, but please just call me Blair.”

CEO Lee waves Blair to follow him. “I’m glad your company exists or else we’d have to spend several months finding a suitable replacement and have an open position until then. We sent over a packet of our policies regarding idols and how things will work. It’s alright if you haven’t read through it all.”

“Actually, sir,” Blair speaks up. “I’ve read through the policies and have them memorized. I look forward to working this assignment you’ve requested.”

The CEO exits the elevator onto the top floor where his office is. He looks at the bodyguard in surprise. “We sent it over just yesterday…I’m surprised you’ve memorized it so quickly.” He shakes his head with a smile. “I do have an NDA for you to sign, then you’re free to go speak with the other bodyguards of your group.”

Nodding, Blair signs the required form before sliding her pen back onto her tie. She bows to the CEO before following his directions downstairs. It only takes her a few minutes to find her destination, a small kitchen space. She enters to find her coworkers eating a light meal for lunch. They stop, looking at the newcomer.

“ **You must be Blair** ,” the tallest says in English. _All males. Not surprised._ Blair bows to him in greeting. “ **I’m Ryu Sang Ki.”** He points to the other bodyguard, who slurps down his ramen. “ **That’s Zhang Mun-Hee. Ignore his manners.** ”

Blair smirks, speaking Korean to the two. “I can easily do that,” she slips out of her jacket, feeling the warm inside versus the chill outside.

Zhang speaks up now that his mouth isn’t full, and that he knows his new coworker can speak Korean. “Welcome to the team, Blair. The girls are downstairs practicing so we’re here for a few more hours.”

The dark-haired Ryu nods. He gestures towards the door Blair entered from. “We can go introduce you. I’m sure your arrival has already reached the practice rooms.” He looks to Zhang, playfully nudging him. “You know those girls hear all the gossip around here.”

“Sounds good,” Blair replies, already assuming her charges are drama queens. _Wouldn’t be the first group I’ve had that love theatrics._ Ryu leads the way downstairs, taking the stairs versus the elevator. _Seems…more relaxed than recent assignments. Why was I chosen for this assignment?_

“And here we are,” Ryu says, pointing to a glass door covered in faux frost to block people’s sight. “I’ll leave you to it. Min-Hee will eat all my food if I’m gone too long.” He lightly pats the American’s shoulder before walking around the corner.

Rolling her eyes, Blair opens the frosty glass door. As soon as the door is open, music blasts through the now open doorway. She quickly enters, shutting the door as to not disturb anyone on the floor. _This floor is just practice rooms, but I’m sure the offices above could hear that._ Blair’s eyes land on a group of seven girls as they move to the beat of the music. Leaning against the wall next to the door, Blair watches them, barely nodding along to the music. _This is…better than I expected. I’ve heard K-pop before and found most of it too generic. Though there have been songs that I found I like._ As she stands there, she sees their faces in the mirror. _They look…familiar. Maybe I saw them before or something._ She pushes the thought aside.

When the music is paused, Blair watches the girls approach her. They bow, announcing themselves as they do before show and appearances. “내 꿈꺼~ 안녕하세요, 드림캐쳐입니다.”

Bowing in return, Blair introduces herself in English. “ **Blair Bast, newest bodyguard assigned to your group**.”

One of the girls speaks English back to Blair. “ **I’m Kim Yoohyeon**. **This is Kim Minji or Jiu, Kim Bora or Sua, Lee Siyeon, Handong, Lee Yubin or Dami, and Lee Gahyeon**.” Nodding, Blair repeats the names while looking at each girl. She commits the names to memory while the group talks amongst themselves.

“She’s pretty,” Siyeon says, glancing at the female bodyguard.

“What’re you talking about, Siyeon? She’s hot!” Sua proudly exclaims, unaware that Blair knows what she’s saying.

Jiu shakes her head at the two, laughing when Yoohyeon speaks up. “We finally have a female bodyguard. Not that I didn’t like Jihoon, but still!”

“Jihoon was cool, but a little creepy,” Handong adds softly.

Blair, having heard what the girl said, steps forward, eyes blazing with a barely restrained fire. “He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

The display of knowing Korean shocks the girls. Jiu is the one that breaks out of it though. “No. He would make comments to us when the others were away.”

Growling, Blair crosses her arms. She looks at the members, eyes softening. “If anyone, I don’t care if it’s another guard or your CEO or a fan, says anything that makes you uncomfortable, you tell me. I won’t let them get away with saying something like that to you,” she says, voice confident. Pulling her phone from her pocket, she hands it to the closest member, which happens to be Siyeon.

“Siyeon, you’re already getting her number?!” Sua says, playfully fanning herself as she fake swoons.

Blair chuckles, noticing the mentioned girl has a light blush on her cheeks. She lightly pats the girl’s shoulder. “It’s just in case any of you need to get a hold of me. I believe I’m staying in an apartment complex near your dorms. Don’t hesitate to call or text me. I don’t care what time of day it is.”

Jiu speaks up, bowing to the guard. This prompts the others to do the same. “Thank you. We look forward to working with you…”

“Just call me Blair. I’m pretty sure we’re close enough in age,” the American says, shrugging.

“Really?” Yoohyeon says in surprise.

“I’m…” Blair quickly calculates her Korean age. “26?”

“So, you were born in 1995?” Siyeon asks, excitement in her tone.

Blair quickly shakes her head. “No, no. 1994,” she replies.

“We’re almost the same age then!” Siyeon grins.

Chuckling, Blair looks at singer. “October 1st, right?” Siyeon nods, surprised the American knows her birthday. “Mine’s the 3rd.”

“No way! We’re birthday buddies!” Siyeon shouts. She does this grunt that causes Blair to laugh.

Wiping her eyes, Blair glances at her watch. “It’s almost time to head back,” she says.

The others check the time. “Oh wow,” Sua comments.

“Let’s clean up and head back,” Jiu says to the group. Obediently, the group cleans up, mopping the floors and picking up trash.

Exiting the practice room, the group is stopped by the CEO. He smiles at the group’s greeting before his attention turns to Blair. “I’m so sorry, Blair. The complex you were to stay in called and said they no longer have that unit available. We’re contacting several hotels in the area to find you somewhere else to stay, but currently, they’re all booked.”

Nodding, Blair smiles at the man. “It’s alright. I appreciate the efforts made. If it’s alright with you, I would be fine with crashing on one of the couches downstairs.”

“You can’t do that!” Sua exclaims. Blair and the CEO glance at her for the outburst. She goes to apologize when the CEO snaps his fingers.

“That’s perfect!” He looks to the girl group. “Until we can find her other accommodations, she can crash in your dorm. Is that alright with your girls?” he asks them.

“Of course!” the group replies after a quick glance at one another.

Blair doesn’t show it, but she’s relieved to not be slipping at the company building. The CEO grins. “Good! Did your manager ever get you the couch that was missing from your dorm?”

“We told him it was alright,” Jiu speaks up. “It was right before our comeback and he seemed stressed…” She trails off.

The CEO smiles at the girls. “Then I’ll go get one while you girls show her around! I’ll be back soon!” He quickly leaves before anyone can say anything further.

Blair looks at the girls. “Is he always like that?”

“Yeah,” they all say at once. The American nods in response.

“Blair,” Sua says cautiously, unsure about calling the bodyguard such a familiar name. The American looks at her. “Where do you want to go while the CEO is getting you a place to sleep?”

Shrugging, Blair glances at Jiu before answering. “I’m good with whatever.”

Siyeon looks at Sua, who returns the look. The former turns to the others, whispering some plan. Blair looks in confusion as their faces light up in excitement. Jiu shares the same look until Sua whispers the same to her. “Let’s go bowling, Blair-unnie!” Siyeon, Jiu, Sua, and Yoohyeon shout as the others say it in a normal voice.

As they walk out of the building, Blair looks to Handong and Gahyeon. “Are they always this hyper?”

The maknae nods. “Always.” Blair nods, following the group as they lead the way. _Looks like I’m in for quite the assignment._


	3. Part II

As expected, the dorm building isn’t far from the company. Blair lets the Korean idols lead her through the inner hallways until they reach the door to their dorm. The American enters the room behind Jiu and Yoohyeon with the other members behind her. “ **Here is our dorm** ,” Yoohyeon says.

“ **This is nice** ,” Blair replies. “It’s so cute.”

Jiu picks up in the conversation, pointing out the doors and what’s where. “Siyeon, Dami, and I share the last room. Yoohyeon and Sua share this one,” she says, then turns to the last bedroom door. “That’s Gahyeon’s and Dongie’s room.”

Nodding, Blair points to the living space. “Then it’s alright if I sleep here, right?”

“Of course, unnie!” Yoohyeon claps her hands.

The leader of the group gestures towards the rooms. “Let’s let Blair settle in.” Jiu vaguely motions. Once the other members have split off to their rooms, she looks at the American, smiling apologetically. “Sorry about them. We’ve wanted a female bodyguard for a while, but no one ever met the company’s standards.”

Nodding, the dark-haired American smiles. “Good. Happy to be of assistance.” Looking at the leader for more than a few seconds, she notices the signs of stress hidden among the other’s features. She lowers her voice, slightly leaning forward. “If…you ever need to talk, about anything bothering you, my ears are open.”

Jiu’s eyes widen in surprise. Before she can reply, there’s a knock on the door. She goes to answer it, only to find her CEO at the door with a grin. “I found a futon bed!” His expression turns sheepish. “…but I’ll need a hand carrying it inside.” In his hands are several bags, which Jiu takes for him.

“I can help with that,” Blair says, lightly touching Jiu’s shoulder as she passes. “Lead the way.”

Nodding, the CEO walks with Blair back to his car. In the elevator, he looks to the American. “How are you settling in?”

Blair glances at the man, nodding. “It’s going well. The members seem to like having a female guard around. Seems their last one was…not one they were found of. Nothing physical happened, but there was mention of unprofessional verbal comments.”

The CEO frowns, anger in his expression. “Please let me know if anymore are to come up. I won’t tolerate my idols to be treated in such a way by my employees.”

“Of course. I don’t allow my charges to withstand such treatment,” Blair replies as they reach the vehicle. She looks at the van with its trunk open and a large box sticking out.

“Do you think just us is enough?” the man asks, shocked when Blair grabs the end and slides it out of the van. “…you’re very strong.”

Chuckling, Blair readjusts to hold the box with better balance. “It’s why I’m the company’s best,” she jokes.

The CEO laughs at the comment. “Let’s get this inside and put together. I’m sure you’re feeling jetlagged or you will soon.”

Once back inside, the CEO, with Blair’s help, put together the futon and slide it against the wall. Jiu helps make the bed, opening the bags the CEO brought. She finds several different sheets and a light comforter. In the span of less than two hours, the futon is put together, made into a bed, and ready for anyone to sleep on. After thanking the CEO, Blair shows him out, watching him drive away. She returns upstairs, opening the door with the keycode Jiu gave her. Once inside, she finds the others are still in their rooms, most likely acting crazy as they get ready for bed. Blair finds herself without a change of clothes, as hers were being shipped by her company to the hotel she was supposed to be staying at. _Guess I’ll go by the hotel tomorrow to see if my clothes have come in._ Laying on the futon with her shirt slightly unbuttoned, Blair stares at the ceiling as she tries to sleep. Her eyes drift close as she focuses on simply breathing. After several minutes, her breathing evens out as she falls into the first round of sleep.

Smoke fills the evening air, creating a screen that prevents being able to see. The flames rip through the walls, jumping from building to building. Screams of horror echo throughout the village. A lone figure rushes through the doors of the houses, helping people who are unable to escape without help. When the figure hands off the people they’ve helped, their family cry with relief, sending a flood of pride into their system. As the sun sets and day turns to night, the figure, although exhausted, continues to help. Their face is hidden by a scarf while a hood helps hide the rest of their identity. The figure enters one last house, going in after hearing a faint cry for help. They search each room, coming across a young child, trapped in a closet after the structure around it collapses, leaving only the closet and frame of the house amongst the wreckage. The debris is pushed aside, allowing the child to rush out and hug the figure. Returning the hug, the figure lifts the child and goes to flee the smoldering building. As they flee, the structure creaks. Letting the child down, the figure pushes them to exit. As they run free of the building, the overhead beam collapses, slamming into the figure and pinning them to the ground.

Blair wakes up with a jolt. Her breath comes in heavy pants. She stares at her lap, eyes unfocused as she pushes the cover off her. Standing up, she grabs her suit jacket and walks to the door. She locks the door before stepping out into the hallway. Her feet take her past the elevator and to the stairwell. She practically slides down the railing. As soon as she out in the fresh air, she takes a deep, calming breath. Her attention shifts to the sky, stars shining brightly.

 _Deep breaths, Blair. It was just a nightmare. Calm down._ Reaching up, she lays her hand over her heart as her eyes close. She allows her body to relax against the side of the building, mind focusing on her breathing. _In and Out. Just focus._ A few minutes pass, letting the bodyguard slow her rapid heartbeat. When she feels calmed down, Blair pulls her jacket tighter around her as the wind nips at her form. Before she can move, she feels a chill shoot up her spine. She turns around, only to see a pair of red eyes glaring at her from the darkened alley. _Seriously? It’s only my first day._

Facing the creature, the American waits for it to make its move. It only takes the creature a minute to size Blair up and launch its attack. She sidesteps the basketball sized smoky-red energy sent her way. Her hand darts out after it passes her and dissipates. A white ball of smoky-blue energy is thrown from Blair’s hand. It grows as it flies at the creature, turning from the size of a baseball to the size of a basketball. As soon as it hits the creature, the light illuminates around it, revealing a demon with the body of a spider. The creature’s head is that of a gorilla, creating a ghastly sight of a monster.

Blair watches the creature writhe in pain. In the dark shadows, she doesn’t see the creature’s webbing shoot out until it’s too late. The acidic webbing sticks to Blair’s arms, burning through her suit jacket and shirt. Growling, she feels herself jerked towards the creature. Forming a car wheel-sized energy ball, she shoves it at the creature’s form, burning it so that it lets go of her. With her arms free, she throws the energy ball at the creature. This time, the ball hits the creature, turning its form to ash. The remains drop to the ground, wind blowing it apart.

Turning away, Blair walks back inside the building, knowing her jacket and shirt are lost causes. _I’ll have to go out later for new clothes unless mine are at the hotel._ She unlocks the door to the dorm. Entering as quietly as she can, she turns the corner, only to see a familiar pair of eyes watching her. Jiu sits on the edge of the futon, hands held tightly together in her lap. When she heard the door open, she looked up to see Blair entering. Upon seeing the burns to her arms, Jiu quickly rushes over to her.

“Are you okay? What happened?” Jiu whispers in quick succession.

Blair feels the girl’s cold fingertips brush along the burns. _There’s no good excuse for these burns._ “Ah, I’m fine,” she replies, choosing to omit the explanation of what happened. “Just needed some fresh air.”

The leader looks at the bodyguard. Seeing the unwillingness to share, Jiu sighs. “It’s fine if you don’t want to tell me. As long as you’re sure you’re okay…”

Smiling at the concern in Jiu’s tone, Blair slowly pulls her arms out of the other girl’s grasp, immediately missing the comfortable warmth the touch immitted. She meets the other’s gaze. “I’m really okay.” She glances at the hallway to the leader’s room. “You should go back and get some sleep, unnie,” she playfully says.

A light blush coats the leader’s cheeks. “R-Right, okay. Goodnight, Blair.” She hesitantly steps away before realizing Blair’s watching her leave. Once the leader is out of sight, Blair looks at her burns, watching it slowly stitch back together. She sighs, laying back down on the futon. _Maybe I’ll get a few more hours of sleep._


	4. Part III

The lights on stage dim. Blair watches for her spot next to the stage as her seven charges walk out on stage. Each wears a different style outfit but incorporates the same black and red color scheme. The horn sounds, signifying the start of the song called “Piri”. Blair watches the girl’s performance with interest. It’s one of the last performances for the song in the month of promotion. _They’ve shown they have talent. I’ve gotten to know them since my first day a month ago. Zhang and Ryu have shown me the ropes so to speak while keeping things friendly. This is the first assignment I’ve had where it feels less like a job and more like a lifestyle that I enjoy. Perhaps I can get hired fulltime with them…_

As the song comes to an end, Blair looks at the girls’ final pose. She scans their expressions; excitement is what she sees. When her eyes find the leader’s, they share a nod. _Ever since that first night, Jiu’s watched me. My wounds healed after a couple days, but I made sure to wear long sleeves as to avoid suspicion._ Just as the girls walk off stage, I feel a familiar, yet unknown, presence close by. Tapping the mic in the ear, I speak just loud enough for it to pick up what I’m saying. “Got some feedback from my mic, disconnecting,” she easily lies, pulling the piece from her ear. Letting it dangle, she makes her way towards the backstage area. The bouncer there opens the door upon seeing her pass, which was pinned to her suit jacket when they first arrived.

Scanning each corner as she walks, Blair feels herself getting closer to the presence. Her eyes widen when she sees she’s also nearing Dreamcatcher’s room. Her pace picks up. As soon as her hand is on the handle, she swings the door open, power brimming just beneath the surface. She looks at the many pairs of eyes staring at her. Her eyes scan the group of people in the room, finally landing on a man with curly, dark brown hair. She can practically see the black smoke emitting from his body. It isn’t really there, but the amount of power coming from him is enough to imagine it.

“Can I help you?” Blair angrily asks the man, feeling her own power bubbling beneath the surface. She fights with herself to keep it under control.

“Good to see you again, Blair,” the man says, causing the mentioned female to stare at him in confusion. _How does he know my name?_ Chuckling, he faces her, turning from his conversation with Dreamcatcher. His next words are unknown to any in the room except Blair. “ ** _Questa volta non sarai in grado di fermarlo, contadina_** (You won't be able to stop it this time, peasant),” he says to her before walking to her. His pace is casual, yet sultry. Once he’s close enough, he quickly wraps his hands around her neck and presses his lips to hers. Eyes wide, she pushes against his chest, but suddenly stops at the image that flashes across her vision. She no longer looks at the man, but a young boy with a similar hair style. The boy’s face contorts, eyes glowing red. His face changes, skin melting away to reveal a Demon’s face. Although the only lasted a few seconds, Blair finally pulls away and wipes her lips, glaring at the unknown man.

“You-“

“See you later, love,” he says, opening the door behind her and leaving.

Anger and embarrassment floods the bodyguard. She growls, sounding more like a demon than herself. Turning around, her eyes briefly meets Jiu’s before she’s out the door to rush after him. In the short time it took to exit, the man is gone, demonic presence gone. _Bastard._ She angrily wipes her lips on her sleeve. _Who the fuck was he? And why did I see that image when he-he kissed me?_ She grabs her earpiece, putting it back in her ear. Closing her eyes, she lets herself lean against the wall of the hallway. _Deep breaths. You still have a job to do._ Letting her eyes open, revealing a quick flash of white in them, Blair walks back to Dreamcatcher’s dressing room.

Back in the room, things have normalized. No one mentions the mysterious guy that kissed Blair, or the fact that Blair freaked out because of him. The girls’ hair and makeup is quickly fixed before they go back out for the voting results. Blair helps the hair and makeup artists clean up while the Ryu and Zhang go to watch the results. Once done, she makes her way outside for some fresh air.

More images flash in her mind now that she isn’t preoccupied. She sees a building burning down before it suddenly gets closer, then she’s inside, yelling at people to escape as she frees the trapped ones. Her breathing rate picks up, overcome by the smoke she can practically feel filling her throat. She drops to a knee, body slumped over, using her other knee to keep herself up. Her vision swarms as she feels the vision fade. She forces her short rapid breaths into long, slow breaths.

“Looks like I get to have fun tonight,” she hears in front of her.

Looking up, Blair barely manages to roll out of the way of the blast of energy sent at her. She stops her roll in a crouch, hands up to fight. “So not the night to mess with me,” she growls, pupils disappearing in a glow of soft white light.

The Demon, in the form of a human male, laughs. “You’ve got spunk, Angel, but I’ve been without a meal for too long.”

Rolling her eyes, Blair snorts. “Good thing you’re gonna die then.”

The two launch at one another. Blair goes on the defensive, choosing to bide her time and wait for an opening. This doesn’t always work, especially in this case where the two of them are evenly matched. She ignores the burn of the wound to her shoulder. _Should’ve moved faster._ The Demon’s form breaks apart, revealing the figure of a minotaur. _That’s nasty._ He rushes her, ground thumping beneath his feet. She drops, using her body to knock his feet back, sending the minotaur Demon soaring over her hand. With him down, she stands up, white light forming in her hands. She straightens her left arm out, pulling her right back as a compound bow forms. An arrow of white light appears in her hand. She lets the arrow go, piercing the Minotaur’s chest. It roars in anger, sprinting at her. She goes to dodge when a pair of hands seize her arms. Looking behind her, she sees the man that kissed her.

“ **Until next time, Angel** ,” he says, disappearing before the minotaur gets close.

Feeling her body fly backwards, Blair grunts at feeling her body slam into the wall of the alley behind her. She drops to her knees, one hand stopping her from faceplanting the ground. Turning over, she sits down, eyes checking for another Demon. She doesn’t see one, nor feel one nearby, causing her to relax slightly. The earpiece crackles to life. _Surprised it didn’t get destroyed or fall out._

“Blair, where are you? We’re out front,” Ryu’s voice filters through.

Taking a deep breath, Blair lets her voice come out calm. “Sorry. I’ll be back later. WatchDog boss called,” she replies. _I don’t really want to lie, but…I can’t tell them the truth. They’d laugh, thinking I’m joking or crazy. How would one go about explaining they’re a real angel?_

Upon arriving at the dorm almost an hour later, Blair walks in, expecting the girls to be asleep or in their rooms, but there’s one still waiting up for her. She sees Jiu sitting on the futon with her hands in her lap. Upon entering the common space, Jiu looks up to the see the bodyguard’s formed slumped with one arm limp and the other poking through a torn sleeve. Immediately, the leader gets up, revealing the first aid kit behind her. She doesn’t take it, instead pushing Blair to sit on the futon. Quietly, the oldest member peels the remains of Blair’s jacket off. Wincing at the movement, Blair watches the other’s movements. _Isn’t she gonna ask…?_ Jiu still doesn’t say anything. The only change is her expression going from worried to shock then to determination. She cleans Blair’s wounds, covering them with the gauze she has.

“You should be more careful,” Jiu mutters, voice so soft Blair strained to hear what was said.

“Sorry,” the bodyguard replies, feeling like she’s being chastised.

“If you don’t want to tell me…that’s fine. It’s your business, but…just know the others kept asking when you’d return. I told them to go to bed, that you’d be back late.”

“Thank you, Jiu,” Blair says softly. “I’m sorry to have kept you up. I’ll try to stay quieter from now on.”

“Idiot. I was up because I was worried about you. You’re not just our bodyguard, Blair. You’re a friend.”

Surprised at the admission, Blair can only nod in response. _I’m…their friend?_ An image flashes across her vision. Jiu’s still sitting in front of her, but she wears a silver armor with a pink scarf around her neck. _What?_ The image flickers, then fades completely. _What the fuck? Why did that seem so familiar?_ She shakes her head, pushing the image aside. “Thank you, Jiu,” she says instead, looking away from the bright red-haired Korean.

Jiu stands up. “Goodnight, Blair.” She doesn’t say anything else.

Watching the leader go, the bodyguard frowns. _She’s mad. I would be too, but she can’t know about the truth either. I’m not human. Not anymore. I don’t even remember being human._ Changing into a new set of clothes, she throws the torn ones away. She lays down on the futon, sleep claiming her much easily now that her body must work to heal itself.


	5. Part IV

Today, Dreamcatcher is filming the relay dance for Piri. Zhang, Ryu, and Blair wait behind the cameras as usual. The trio of bodyguards remain vigilante but enjoy watching their charges dance around on the stage. Blair watches the leader of the group, noticing that the make-up artists did well in hiding how little sleep the Korean got. Frowning, Blair lets her thoughts drift. _It’s my fault for worrying her. If I hadn’t of stayed out, she would’ve gone to bed. At least then I probably could’ve snuck out to deal with the Demon._

Focusing back on the girls, Blair listens to music and watches them enjoy themselves. Yoohyeon messes up, nearly tripping over Jiu’s feet. The relay pauses while they check on her, but Blair sees a different scene. She stares as Yoohyeon sits on the ground in a white dress, looking up at Jiu, who wears a short black dress. While Jiu is offering her hand to help Yoohyeon up, Blair sees it as Jiu aiming a very sharp sword at the younger member. _That would never happen._ Shaking her head, Blair takes a step back, bumping into one of the camera guys. Luckily, Ryu helps steady the guy while Zhang stops Blair from falling. She quickly faces the camera man, bowing excessively. He bows back, accepting the apology.

“What’s with you today, Blair?” Ryu asks her.

Shaking her head to clear the odd images of Jiu and Yoohyeon, she replies. “I don’t know,” she mutters. “I need a moment.” She doesn’t wait for his reply, quickly retreating out of the room. Finding herself an empty room, she shuts the door, inadvertently slamming it harder than she meant to. The door rattles on its hinges but remains in place. Grumbling incoherently, Blair paces. “ **What the fuck is happening to me? This shouldn’t be happening. I don’t remember it ever-** “ Stopping short, she stares at the wall. _Memory._ She notices the mirror in front of her, just to the left of where her stare was fixated at. Her clothes change to dirty, old, raggedy scraps. The voice of the man who kissed her echoes in her mind. _Peasant._ Her eyes close as she feels like she got kicked in the head. She grabs at her head, pushing against it as a painful pounding starts. “What the-“

The room changes around her. She looks up to see she’s in some kind of village. Houses made of wood and straw surround her. Taking a step forward, the village seems to come to life as people exit the houses, greeting Blair with a different name. “Welcome back, Song Yi. How was the hunt?” Blair, being called Song Yi, looks down, noticing she carries several dead rabbits. Her eyes widen. Ignoring the man, she walks forward, surveying the place she can only describe as a hallucination. _Did I pass out?_ As she treks, something pushes her to one of the larger houses. She enters, only to get created by a large, muscular man. He pulls her into a hug, lifting her off the ground. _Why does the name Song Yi sound familiar?_

“My little sister is all grown up! You must’ve learned to catch those rabbits from the greatest brother ever!”

Blair finds herself answering without meaning to. “As if! I’m just naturally talented. Unlike you, Taeyang.” _What? Little sister? Teasing? I have an older brother?_

The older brother chuckles. “Well, I guess I can agree to your many talents. You did convince many of our people to help aid the rebellion.”

Blair moves quickly, shoving her palm over Taeyang’s mouth. “Careful. We don’t know who’s listening.”

Taeyang’s eyes widen. He nods. “Sorry,” he whispers once her hand is pulled away. His voice returns to normal. “Father should be returning home from his meeting with the Pri-Queen’s Army. They’ve come to seek out the rebellion,” he says, voice carrying. “Like we know where they’d be hiding. We keep to ourselves out this far near the border.”

Nodding, Blair follows her brother to the kitchen, where a cook happily greets them. “My great hosts! This is quite the catch today.” He looks at Taeyang, who points to Blair.

“Wasn’t me this time, Ryu.” Blair stares at the man, suddenly realizing why he looked so familiar. _Ryu! As in my fellow bodyguard. What the fuck is going on?_

Screams are heard outside the house, prompting Ryu to take a butcher’s knife with him, Taeyang, and Blair as they run outside the house. The group stares in shock as the Queen’s banners are flown from several knights. “Bastards,” Ryu says, watching them retreat from a house on fire, only to start setting more.

Taeyang rushes forward, drawing a massive sword. “Don’t just stand there!” He yells to Ryu and Blair. “Song, yours is in your room. Nice and polished!”

Not really knowing what he means, Blair runs back inside the house, feet knowing exactly where to go. She enters a simply decorated room but cares only for the longsword laying on her bed. Grabbing it, she runs back out to find her brother and Rye fighting some of the Queen’s knights. Blair looks at the black and green armor of the knights before rushing to help her brother. The two of them fight back-to-back. They severely wound several of the knights, but eventually are overwhelmed. Taeyang orders Blair to retreat, but she refuses. He practically shoves her out of an opening in the formation before attacking so that all focus is on him. Blair tries to help but hears screams for help. She rushes to one of the burning buildings. A woman frantically tells her that her children are trapped inside. Sheathing her sword, Blair pulls her shirt over her mouth and runs inside. She gets the children out before going to help others escape in the other burning buildings. Her feet move without her deciding to save them, she just does it. On the last time she rushes out of the burning building, she stops short, seeing her brother’s body near a mass of black armor. She yells in horror, anger flooding her. The sounds of thundering hooves reach her ears. She looks towards the sound, seeing the Queen’s banner. At the head of it, she sees the General. _That’s Jiu! In the armor and scarf I saw before!_

“Lady Song!” Ryu yells from behind her. She looks over her shoulder at him. “You need to go inform the rebellion about this. Our people are already fleeing there as we speak.”

“But Ryu-“

The man grabs her arms, forcing her to face him. He pulls her into a hug. “The Queen’s lost all sense! We must stop this and for that to happen. You must survive, Song Yi!” He shoves her back towards the way he came from. His body sprints at the black armored knights, where he holds them off.

Blair stares in shock. _This is just a dream, right?_ Her heart clenches at the sight of Ryu fighting to his death to save her and of Jiu, whose army rushes towards them. She turns away, barely catching the hurt and confusion Jiu directs to her. _This isn’t real. It-No-It can’t._ Blair runs and runs until her legs give out. As her knees hit the ground, the jolt sends the world around her away.

Gasping for air, Blair stares at the reflection of herself in the mirror. She’s no longer in the torn clothes, but back in her black suit and red tie. Her knees hurt from hitting the ground. _What…That wasn’t-How did-Why was Jiu there? Shit!_ Pushing herself up, she swings the door open, only to collide with a body. Her arms shoot out, catching whoever she bumped it. She looks at the figure, eyes wide.

“Jiu!” She quickly gets the leader standing before letting go of her and stepping back out of her personal space. Bowing, she apologizes profusely. “ **Sorry!** I wasn’t paying attention.”

“It’s okay, Blair. Are you okay though? You…look like you’ve seen a ghost?” Jiu questions softly.

Straightening up, Blair shakes her hands. “No, no. Just had a phone call from my Boss. He just wanted to check in on the assignment.”

“Oh,” Jiu says, voice…sad? She quickly perks up, putting on a fake smile. “We’re done with filming so we’re going back to the dorm. We weren’t sure where you went… so I told the girls I’d come find you.”

Nodding, Blair gestures forward. “Lead the way,” she says, playfully bowing.

Shaking her head, Jiu walks back to the dressing room. While the bodyguards wait outside, the girls finish changing out of their performance uniforms. Once done, the guards escort them to their vehicles. The two managers drive the girls back to their dorm, where Blair meets up with them on her motorcycle. After customs approved the vehicle into the country, Blair prefers to ride it when going to events. She parks the bike on the side street, covering it with a tarp before going inside.

“Blair-unnie!” Gahyeon greets the older one. “How did you like our relay?”

Smiling, Blair gives her a thumbs up. “I liked it! Sorry I had to leave in the morning of the filming. My Boss wanted a checkup.”

The maknae waves the comment aside. “It’s okay!”

Siyeon, Yoohyeon, and Handong split off to go take showers in their own rooms. This leaves Gahyeon, Sua, Dami, and Jiu with Blair. “What do you guys want to eat?” Blair asks, looking through the takeout menus in the kitchen.

“Samgyeopsal,” Gahyeon says as Sua and Dami say, “Hamburgers!” “Kimchi Bokkeumbap!”

“Kimchi stew,” Jiu practically yells, playfully glaring at her two members.

Chucking, Blair nods. “Alright. I’ll call it in and go pick it up.”

“We can go with you,” Sua offers.

“Yeah, unnie! It’s dangerous by yourself at night,” Gahyeon replies.

 _How right you are, Gahyeon._ Blair smiles, avoiding the look from Jiu. _She looks like she wants to tell me that she’s coming whether I want her to or not._ “I’ll be alright. You’ve all working hard today so you deserve a treat and plenty of rest.”

“If you’re sure…” Sua trails off.

“I’m positive,” Blair calls in their order just as the others come out of their rooms with wet hair. Sua, Dami, and Gahyeon go to take showers next. Blair leaves a few minutes later. She makes it to the restaurant without incident. Even makes it all the way in the apartment before she remembers her own order of bulgogi. She reassures the members before leaving to go back and get what she ordered. This time, however, her trip is much worse.

Turning the corner after leaving the restaurant, Blair stops short, eyes meeting red glowing ones. _Shit._ The Demon from before stares at her with a grin. “It’s good to know those girls are still together. The betrayal this time will be all the more sweeter,” he says.

Dropping the food, Blair lifts her hands, making fists. “Who are you? And how do you know me?”

The disguised demon laughs. He wipes a stray tear. “They really messed you up, didn’t they Song Yi?” Blair’s body freezes. _How?_ “It’s good to see you again, even if you’ve forgotten the Prince of Hell.” He smirks at her look of shock. _Solas._


	6. Part V

The fight starts with Solas launching at Blair, body moving quickly than the angel can dodge. She feels an energized fist slam into her abdomen, sending her flying back. Body landing in a crumple heap, she takes gasps of air, rolling herself to get back up. Solas sprints forward, reaching down and grabbing the angel by her neck. He pulls her up, only to slam her back down, leaving cracks in the asphalt of the road. Luckily, the time of night means the amount of people that come this way are, well, none.

Solas tsks. “Where’s all that power at, huh? Give me something worth killing you over!” Climbing on the angel, he wraps one hand around her neck, using the other to summon a very ornamental dagger. He squeezes her neck while using the dagger, decorated with expensive jewels, to cut the front of her shirt. With her vision swarming, she tries to fight back, but a well-aimed hit to the chest leaves her gasping for air. Leaving her distracted, Solas digs the knife into the skin of her chest, leaving his name scarred into her skin. He knows it won’t last forever but using the angel-killing knife allows the marks to remain long after a normal injury. His eyes shine with glee and excitement at the burning of her skin around the cuts.

The screams from Blair are one of pain and anger. _Get up._ She weakly pushes against Solas, energy spent on trying to fight him. He cackles, climbing off her while summon a large sword, one once called the angel-slayer. _Get. Up!_ The angel lets out a gut-turning scream as the weapon is stabbed into her right shoulder, shattering the scapula. She reaches for the wound with her uninjured arm, but Solas grabs it, pulling her up. Her screams stop short, turning into a choking sound.

“S-St-Sto-“

Solas laughs loudly. “Oh man, I forgot how fun it was to play like this! Torturing you alive was just so much fun!” The scenery around her changes, leaving her to stare at the squad of black knights.

The knights surround her, having caught up to her after she tried to flee the destruction of her village. She watches the knights wait for their leader’s order. When the man walks forward, he cackles. _Solas?_ He roughly grabs her neck, fingers digging into the sides. She pushes against him, trying to fight back. “You’re rather spunky, huh,” he comments loudly so his men can hear. They chuckle with him. His attention goes back to Song Yi. “I think we should-“

“Stop!” A commanding voice yells harshly. The man glares over his shoulder as Jiu comes into view. _What? Before she was with these guys that destroyed the village, now she’s stopping him?_ She appears in Song Yi’s view, hand on her sword. Behind her, Siyeon and Dami flank her with a small group of knights in silver armor. “Let her go! This isn’t what was ordered.”

Solas laughs. “Oh dear, General,” he turns, dragging Song Yi with. Jiu looks at the girl in concern. _Why does she look at me like she knows me?_ “The Queen orders us to do whatever it takes to squash this rebellion. Unlike you, she knows how to properly use our talents.” He quickly grabs the dagger from his belt, the same ornamental one, and thrusts it into Song Yi’s chest. She lets out a scream of pain. Blood seeps out of the wound as he twists the knife deeper. Tears flood out of Song’s eyes. She tries to push against him, but all her energy is spent. Numb, she goes limp, unable to fight anymore. Her eyes meet Jiu’s.

“No!” Anger flares in Jiu’s eyes. She draws her sword in an instant, holding the tip at Solas’ neck. The black armored knights draw theirs, prompting Siyeon and Dami to do the same, back to Jiu, protecting the flank.

Smirking, the man waves his own knights to stand down. They put the swords away on the command, but Siyeon and Dami keep theirs up. “Do you think someone like you would ever be loved?” he asks, smiling at the look of shock and horror that his statement brings to Jiu’s expression.

“J-Jiu,” Song manages to get out. _How do I know her here? This isn’t a dream or a nightmare. This is a memory._

Immediately, Jiu looks at Song Yi, expression full of pain. “Sunny,” she says, voice lost. She looks back at Solas, expression full of anger and hatred for the man. “Let her go.”

Complying, Solas releases his hold on the peasant girl, letting her body crumble to the ground. He takes several steps back, eyes cold as he addresses the one who has his position. “Don’t think this is the end, general. I intend to take what’s rightfully mine.” He lets his eyes drift to Song Yi now in front of him. “You should get her some help.” Turning away, the man orders his troops to withdraw.

The general rushes to Song Yi, pulling the injured girl into her arms. “Song, Sunny!” She lightly pats the girl’s pale cheeks, getting an incoherent grumble in response. Standing, she carries the girl to their small camp just outside the village. In her personal tent, she orders clean water and privacy as she gets Sunny out of her blood-stained clothes. She cleans the wounds as best she can, tears falling throughout the process. “Sunny,” she whispers, putting the cloth in the red tinted water. Head resting against the girl’s arm, she lets her tears continue to flow. “I’m sorry I didn’t get there quicker. When I realized Yoo sent them after she received words of the lack of fighting, I knew they’d come here first. I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner.”

The ghost of a touch skims the general’s cheek. Her head snaps up to see a barely awake Song Yi. “It…It isn’t your fault, Jiu,” she whispers. “You need…to go before…he comes back to finish us off.”

Grabbing the hand, Jiu presses a light kiss to the knuckles. “I’m not letting him finish you off. You’ve done nothing wrong!” She wants to cry but fights the urge off. “Things have progressively gotten worse and I haven’t done anything about it.”

“You’re doing something about it now,” Song tells the general. “Fight back with them.” Her voice lowers as her words slur. “Sorry…couldn’t fight with you…I lo-“ A coughing fit stops the peasant from finishing her sentence. Having used the last of her energy, she relaxes back onto the cot, eyes staring at the ceiling.

“SUNNY!”

Coming back to herself, Blair stares at Solas. “You killed me,” she mutters.

The demon laughs. “About time! I can still see you struggle to remember, but it’ll come to you…in time.” He smirks. “Until then, I think you need the rest.” He lifts his free hand, black smoky energy collecting into a ball. Pressing hand to the injury on her shoulder, he lets go of her just as the energy flows into her. The force sends her back into the alley opposite where they started this fight. She slams into the wall, dropping to the ground in a limp form of muscle and bone. Her body relaxes onto the ground, unconsciousness seeping in.

Meanwhile, Dreamcatcher is back at their dorm talking about dreams they’ve been having lately. Siyeon and Dami excitedly talk about being knights for some kingdom, fighting bandits and protecting the kingdom. Siyeon and Gahyeon talk about helping run the kingdom’s trade ring and finances while Handong mentions being an ambassador for the other kingdoms when they visit. Yoohyeon and Jiu are more hesitant to share theirs, but after much pleading from the members, the two share what they’ve seen. Yoohyeon starts it off, explaining how she’s been dreaming of being a princess, with her six royal advisors, all being members of Dreamcatcher and helping run the kingdom. Jiu continues, telling the others of her time as the general of the army of Yoohyeon’s kingdom and how her members are also in this kingdom. They talk about being at odds with each other, Jiu pointing a sword at Yoohyeon more than once. There was even mention of an attempt by Jiu to kill Yoohyeon, but Jiu could never bring herself to do it. Once reaching the last part of the dream that the two remember, Jiu mentions the most recent part of this dream.

“I saw Blair, but I didn’t call her that. This general me called her Song Yi,” Jiu says in confusion, unsure why there’s a pressure in her head and around her heart. “I think…I think we were close.”

“What do you mean, unnie?” Gahyeon asks, seeing the leader’s struggle.

“My dreams skipped around a lot…but there were times where I called her Sunny and times when I could feel something…more when seeing her,” Jiu explains, eyebrows furrowed in thought.

Siyeon cuts in after hearing the leader’s pause. “Unnie, do you think…you loved her? This Song Yi?”

Jiu blushes, nodding. “Do you love her now?” Handong asks, surprising the group with her question. She shrugs, knowing she isn’t the only one curious.

“I don’t…think it’s love. I like her, sure, but…” Jiu trails off, unsure how to answer the girl’s question.

“She’s been gone a while,” Sua comments, changing the subject while looking at the door of their dorm.

“Do you think something happened?” Dami muses, looking at Sua then letting her attention drift to each of the members.

Jiu stands up abruptly. “I’m going to go look for her.”

“Unnie, you can’t go alone,” Yoohyeon says, having been lost in thought at hearing they’re all been having similar, if not the same, dream. “It’s dangerous this late.”

“Yoohyeonie’s right,” Siyeon says to the leader.

The group doesn’t mention their surprise at how quick Jiu wanted to go out in search. “What if she got mugged? Or hit by a car!”

Sua reaches over, patting the older girl. “You and I will walk to the restaurant to see if anyone saw her. Then we come back and call Zhang-oppa and Ryu-oppa.”

Agreeing, Jiu follows the shorter girl out of their dorm. The two walk out of their dorm and start towards the restaurant Blair was headed towards. “Do you think she’s okay, Sua?”

The shorter of the two nods. “I’m sure she’s just talking with an old friend or maybe stopped to help someone.”

Neither notice the figure in the alley as they walk down the sidewalk. The figure groans, pushing herself to a seated position. She leans against the wall of the alley, breaths coming out in short, soft bursts. Reaching down, Blair unbuttons her suit jacket. She winces as she slides her good arm out of the coat, stretching the wounds to her chest. Once out of the jacket, she uses it to press against the shoulder wound, tying it with assistance from her mouth pulling it tight. She looks down at her chest, seeing the blood still oozing from the carved name. _Bastard._ Hand against the wall, she slides her feet under her, pushing herself to stand. She grunts, pulling at the wounds even more. Ignoring the flare of pain, she squeezes her eyes until she’s standing on her feet, even if the wall is helping her keep balance. She takes a few tentative steps forward, free hand pressed against the wall for balance while her right arm hangs limply.

Too focused on getting to the end of the alley, Blair doesn’t hear the two familiar voices of Sua and Jiu, but they hear her. Peeking around the corner, Jiu gasps, prompting Sua to look around the leader. They see Blair, blood dripping from the carving on her chest and her shirt cut down the middle, stumble forward. Jiu reacts, rushing to stop the bodyguard. She helps balance the other girl.

“What happened?” she practically screams. “And don’t say nothing, Blair!”

“So loud,” Blair replies, squinting at the Korean. She stares, taking a moment to recognize who it is. “Jiu,” she sighs in relief, almost collapsing on the other. “Need rest,” she says, voice soft. “Too much.”

Sua reaches for Blair’s right arm, intending to help hold the bodyguard up, but the moment she touches the arm, Blair grunts. She looks at the bodyguard, eyes trailing over the word carved into the other’s chest and landing on the nasty shoulder wound. “What happened to you, Blair?” she questions softly.

Blair moves her hand from the wall, grabbing onto Jiu’s shoulder. The leader shifts herself, pulling the arm around her shoulders. Nodding in thanks, Blair lets the two guide her forward. Sua walks behind the guard, hands hovering over her waist to catch her should she fall. Blair answers the questions as they walk. “Sorry…Too dangerous,” she huffs, breaths heavily. “Telling you would…put you in…danger.”

They arrive at the dorm without further comments or questions. Sua goes inside, sending the others to bed before she collects what first aid supplies she can find. Once the others are in their rooms, surprisingly not questioning how odd it is, Sua opens the door. Jiu practically drags Blair to the futon after the latter almost passed out on her. She helps the bodyguard onto the surface before she peels the clothing off the girl. “Oh my-“ Sua rushes over with a bowl of water, gasping. She looks at Jiu, who stares in shock. The leader shakes her head, eyes wet as she uses the water and a towel to clean what dried blood she can. Most of it is still fresh or still oozing blood. A memory of doing the same flashes in her mind. She recalls the same memory that Blair experienced when fighting Solas. Gasping, Jiu takes a step back, looking at the name on Blair’s chest with wide eyes.

“Min-“

“Oh my god,” Jiu mutters. She looks at Sua in shock. “It’s real. It’s all real.” At Sua’s confusion, she continues. “The dreams we’ve been having…they’re memories.”

“What did you see?” Sua asks instead of commenting on the theory.

“I’ve done this before. Cleaned the blood off her,” Jiu replies. She takes the towel again, wiping the wound to Blair’s shoulder. “How is it she’s still alive?” She mutters to herself. “The memory showed that she died after receiving wounds worse than this.”

Sua speaks up. “We should call someone and take her to the hospital.”

Jiu nods. “I agree, but…” She trails off. “Something’s off here. Why do we have memories of some kingdom? And what’s it got to do with Blair?”

Frowning, Sua looks at the bodyguard. “Do…Do you think it was…a past life or something?”

“I honestly don’t know, but that’s the only thing that makes sense.” Jiu puts the towel back in the bowl before grabbing the dark-haired bodyguard’s left hand. She leans down, pressing a kiss to Blair’s forehead. A memory of her doing that flashes in her head. She wills them away for now, deciding to focus on Blair. “The first night that she was assigned to us, Blair came in with these awful burns on her forearms. She wore long sleeves after I noticed them, but I think it healed much quicker than any normal person.”

“What’re you saying, Minji?”

Looking at the second oldest of the group, Jiu sighs. “I don’t think she’s entirely human.”

“We need to talk to her when she wakes up,” Sua admits.

Jiu nods in agreement. “Yeah, but first she needs rest and so do we. We’ve still got a comeback to finish.”

The two retreat to their rooms, falling to sleep after a shower. Meanwhile, Blair sleeps without waking, but it isn’t as peaceful as one would hope. She dreams of her life, again and again. It doesn’t change, but it does add more story. Jiu and Song were from the same village before Jiu went off to the capital to become a knight. She rose up to the rank of general, being put in charge of the kingdom’s army. During this, Blair, well Song Yi, stayed in the village with the intent to take over when her father decided to retire from the position of Chief. When the Princess sent the army, Jiu swore she wouldn’t fight them, but the Princess’ secret soldiers, led by Solas, was sent to ensure the rebellion was crushed by any and all means. This led to Jiu revolting against her former friend, who had betrayed all trust. As a result, Song Yi was killed by Solas before Jiu could stop him. Then, Jiu went after Princess Yoohyeon, who she couldn’t bring herself to kill, but Yoohyeon of that time was able to stop the general’s own betrayal. Yoohyeon killed Jiu and ruled her throne, alone. With the rush of memories, Blair continues to sleep, feeling anger and shock at what she has learned.


	7. Part VI

Ever since Blair was brought back by Jiu and Sua, she’s slept. The two oldest members explained how they found the bodyguard but admitted they didn’t know how or why she was so injured in the first place. Jiu theorizes it was the knight she saw in her dream, Solas, but she keeps that theory to herself, even as the others questions the name on Blair’s chest. Despite wanting to stay with the bodyguard, the group continues with their comeback, mentioning that Blair’s been sick and was unable to participate in the comeback. During one of their last shows, however, Blair finally wakes up from the coma-like state she had been in.

Groaning, Blair forces herself to sit up. She looks down, noticing her lack of shirt. _What the fuck happened?_ She reaches up with her hand, pressing her fingers to her temple. Suddenly, everything comes back to her. She remembers her first life as a human, a friend of Jiu’s. _You were more than that, Blair._ Her time in the afterlife, where she didn’t quite fit in up in Heaven, so she was given the choice to become an angel and fight demons. She remembers agreeing because she felt she could make a change there. Just before she was sent to earth as an angel, her memories were wiped, but she never knew why. _Bastards._ She swings her legs over the edge of the futon. Giving herself a moment, she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Even with her wounds still healing, she can feel her power, her true power, slowly course back into her system. _It’s been too long since I’ve felt at full strength. I’ll heal in a few more days._ She looks at her shoulder, seeing the bone has already grown back, leaving muscle and skin.

Focusing on Heaven, Blair feels the world around her shift as she teleports herself back to the world above. She reopens her eyes, having closed them to concentrate, only to see herself just in front of a familiar pair of doors. _Figures._ She walks forward, chest out and head held high. Her hand grabs the handle, pulling it open. The room around her is similar to a church. There are pews on both sides, where typically people will sit and wait to speak with the leaders of Heaven, the Cherubim. The group of five turn around, shocked expressions on their faces. Despite being more of a spirit than a body, the Cherubim still retain characteristics to how they appeared as humans.

“Angel Blair, what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?” the main Cherubim, Khidr, asks.

Nodding at the group, Blair crosses her arms. “You know why I’m here,” she said to the leader. “You blocked my memories and I want to know why.” Her eyes flicker to the four others; Maalik and Zadkiel, both males, and the two females; Darda and Azra.

Azra sighs, causing Zadkiel and Darda to glare her. “We fear you,” she answers for Khidr, who simply watches the angel.

Shock covers Blair’s expression. “Fear me? Why?”

Maalik speaks up. “You are the strongest angel to ever leave Heaven. We did not know your power would be so immense when we granted you angel status.”

Azra continues. “We feared you’d join the demon’s side in the search for more power.”

Frowning, Blair sighs, hand going to her head. “You literally…stole my life from me!” She drops her hand, irises turning white as she lets her full power bubble beneath the surface of her control. Her attention turns to Khidr. “Tell me everything about my human life. What caused Yoohyeon to turn on her friends?”

“We can’t tell-“

Darda is interrupted by Khidr. “The demon, Solas, found that the Princess’ bond with her friends would help him grow his power. With their bond, he wanted to cause the biggest impact that would make the Princess lose all hope.” Blair lets her power fade, gaining control back over it. Khidr nods at her, continuing. “So, he cursed her thrown, putting negative thoughts in her mind through the control of darkness. He essentially weakened her trust in the girls, making her more susceptible to ideas that they were not to be trusted. Solas broke the Princess’ trust in her friends. In response, she had them killed. The rest, you remember until your death. Solas broke the General with your death, but she still could not kill her friend, hoping there was good in her. In the end, the general died because of that hope. We ensured their souls would live on, but we could not break the curse.”

Zadkiel cuts in before Blair can speak up. “We don’t think the curse can be broken. Solas has amassed more power than the five of us possess.” He frowns. “Those girls are cursed to live through their Princess betraying them.”

Growling, Blair clenches her fists. “There must be something I can do! They don’t deserve this!”

Darda scoffs. “If we can’t do anything about him, what makes you think that you really could?”

“Dara, Maalik, Zadkiel,” Zhidr calls out. “Please leave this to Azra and me.” The trio hesitantly leave. Once gone, the leader of the Cherubim walks to Blair. “I do apologize for what we’ve done. We let fear win when we should’ve trusted you. You were not allowed to leave Heaven because of your power, you were allowed out because of you.” They pause, looking to Azra and nodding.

“I’ve tried everything I know to do, Song Yi, but there is one theory…”

“What is it? I’ll do anything to stop this curse,” the bodyguard says, lightly clasping the Cherubim’s ghostly hands in her own. _You’d think I couldn’t touch them, but only angels can touch the noncorporeal form of the Cherubim._

Azra sighs, smiling sadly. “You must defeat Solas. For good.”

“Then I’ll get to it.”

“Wait, Song Yi,” Khidr grabs the angel’s arm. She faces them. “You must proceed carefully. Solas’ power is intertwined with the life force of the girls. If you do not figure out a way to severe that link, you could harm the girls’ souls and they…we’re not sure exactly what will happen as we’ve never experienced this, but…our research has yielded undesirable results.”

Deflating, the bodyguard looks at the ground. _No. You’ll find a way. It doesn’t matter if it’s now or later. He will be stopped._ Straightening up, the angel looks at the leader. “Please,” she gets on the ground in front of them, bowing. “Please, what must I do?”

Khidr pulls her back up. “Do not bow to me, Song Yi. You are stronger than us so I believe your power alone will severe the link but proceed carefully.” They lightly touch the angel’s shoulder. “You must restore their memories and make sure they know that the Princess was never the one who made the decisions. They must remain hopeful. The stronger the hope, the less hold the link will have.”

“Thank you, Khidr,” Blair-No, Song Yi nods her head in respect.

“It’s been a pleasure having you on our side, Song Yi, and I again apologize for how we handled your power. Know that you do not have to remain loyal to us, but we do ask that you come to us…if you ever need help.”

“Thank you,” Song Yi nods to the two. She lets herself fade away, returning to Seoul. Walking forward, she catches sight of herself in the reflection of a window. No longer does she appear as the American bodyguard she once was, but as her true self…Song Yi notices her reflection and smiles. Her body is still as built as it was, but she feels more like herself than she has in a while. Smirking, she looks at her hand as an energy orb of white, yellow, red, and orange swirl together. _Time to end this._


	8. Part VII

Walking to the door, Song Yi straightens her posture, trying to show confidence. She glances down at the small box in her hands. _This’ll go good with their image too. People won’t question these gifts._ Knuckles knocking on the door, Song Yi waits until the door swings open. Arms wrap around her. She nearly drops the box but manages to hold it in one hand while returning the hug.

“Where have you been?!” Jiu says, pulling the bodyguard inside and closing the door. Song Yi notices all of dreamcatcher is in the main room. Siyeon, Yoohyeon, and Sua sit on the futon while Gahyeon, Handong, and Dami sit on the couch. All six look up when they hear Jiu’s voice. Song Yi waves nervously at the group. Her vision is blocked by Jiu’s anger face. “You owe us an explanation, Blair.”

Nodding, she hands the leader the black box. “These are for you, all of you.” She glances at the others. “I’ll explain everything I can.” _Minus the angel thing…if I can help it._ “First, I need to know if any of you have been having dreams or nightmares involving knights, princess, a kingdom, or anything related to that.”

The group’s eyes widen. Siyeon speaks up first. “How’d you know?”

Sighing, Song Yi lets her expression soften in relief. “It’ll make explaining things easier.” She looks at Jiu. “Can you tell me what you know? Or remember I should ask.”

“I was a knight!” Siyeon exclaims, grinning. “So was Dami and Jiu.”

“Gahyeon and I were helping the Princess, who was Yoohyeon, run the kingdom,” Sua replies. “Dongie was an ambassador.”

“Good, good. So, you remember everything?” Song Yi asks.

Yes,” Yoohyeon says, voice so soft Song Yi barely hears her. “I killed them.” She meets Song Yi’s eyes, tears filling them.

Rushing past Jiu, Song Yi kneels in front of her Yoohyeon, grabbing her hands. “No, no. It wasn’t your choice,” she quickly says loud enough for the group to hear. “You were cursed by Solas.” She glances over her shoulder at Jiu, who stares in shock. “Why don’t I start from the very beginning?”

Yoohyeon shakes her head. “I don’t want to remember this,” her voice cracks.

“Jiu, pass me the box,” Song Yi says to the oldest member, who complies without question. Digging around in the box, Song Yi pulls out a beautifully made dream catcher with green and brown feathers. She hands it to Yoohyeon, who immediately feels a comfortable warmth settle through her. “This isn’t going to take the memories away, but it is going to help you see that you didn’t make those decisions, Yoohyeon.” Seeing the tears in the girl’s eyes, Song Yi reaches up, wiping the few that fall. The angel smiles softly. “I promise you won’t suffer this fate again,” she whispers so softly that only Yoohyeon hears her.

Standing back up, Song Yi moves so that she can see the group. “First things first…My real name is Song Yi. I was born in a small village on the outskirts of the Kim Kingdom.” She sees Jiu stare with wide eyes. “There, my father was the Chief of the village and my mother was a healer. Things were good while the kingdom prospered. I had this best friend, her name was Minji.” She looks at Jiu. “We remained close since her father was my father’s strongest warrior. When Minji decided to go join the knights at the capitol, I was sad to lose my best friend, but I was happy for her and her dream.” Song Yi looks around the room, seeing the interest in their expressions. “Fast forward many years and I was training to take over when my father decided to retire as Chief. My brother wasn’t around much, having decided to travel the world when I was younger. Minji never met him.” She glances at Jiu again, seeing the confusion in her expression clear up. “Minji became General for the King’s army and began training to be an advisor for the Princess when she’d take the throne. Tragedy later struck the royal family as the King and Queen died, leaving the 16-year-old Princess to become Queen. She would’ve made her parents proud. She took care of her people, offering them food and shelter after a particularly harsh winter. It was after that winter that the kingdom started to fall apart. No one knew why, but…I have recently learned the truth…”

Another deep breath is taken. “A child approached the castle, seeking shelter, but the Princess, now Queen, was unable to provide for the child despite her best efforts. As a result, the child, revealed as a demon in disguise, put a curse on the throne so that when the Queen would next sit down…she would be cursed to betray those she loved most. She would betray her advisors and her people. Things changed after that. I had heard of the change, but of course didn’t know why. It wasn’t until talk of rebellion that I knew things would quickly get out of hand. My brother returned home to help aid the rebellion that formed nearby. We helped them train, learn the area, recruit, and they in turn helped protect us. When the Queen’s army arrived at our village, I was shocked to learn Minji, as General, was ordered to take care of us, but she wished to keep as many people alive as she could. I was proud of who my friend had become. She didn’t always resort to violence, but the Queen knew that. After days of verbal agreements, a squad of black armored knights assaulted my village, killing those they could and burning the houses of those who wished to fight or flee. I saved as many as I could, but the demon, now in the form of a man, severely wounded me. I was taken away by Minji, who I couldn’t help but confess feelings for.” Song Yi shrugs, avoiding Jiu’s eyes.

“Sue me, I was dying.” She closes her eyes, thinking back to what happened after that. “The general returned to the capitol with her two loyal knights, Yubin and Siyeon. Only, they arrived too late, learning their friends Handong, Bora, and Gahyeon had been killed by the Queen’s order. I’ve discovered that the Queen had been convinced that her friends were plotting a coup. While Minji secretly plotted with the rebellion, the Queen had Yubin and Siyeon killed by Solas. This left the General to assault the castle with the rebellion. She convinced the Queen to change her ways, but it was all a ruse Solas came up with. When Minji spared her friend a second time, the Queen struck, killing Minji. She continued to rule alone, with the demon whispering in her ears.” Song Yi stops, seeing the shocked expressions of the members. She can see in their eyes that they know all this is true from the memories that have returned to them.

Yoohyeon sniffles. “He started talking to me a few weeks ago,” she admits, breaking down into sniffles and tears.

“What?” Sua says in surprise, voice unintentionally angry. This causes Yoohyeon to openly sob.

Pulling the younger girl to her, Song Yi comfortingly rubs her back and holds her hand. “You listen to me, Yoohyeon,” she says, voice confident and strong. “I will break this curse. He isn’t going to hurt you or the others anymore.” She leans her head down, fingers wiping the tears away. “Please just hold on a little longer, okay? This dream catcher here…it’s going to block the link he has to you. You may still hear his voice, but this’ll muffle it. If he ever says something to you that you don’t like, tell me. I’m here for you, okay?”

“Me too,” Jiu says, kneeling in front of Yoohyeon. She holds the silver-haired girl’s hands. A soft, kind smile forms on her lips. “He won’t break us apart, Yoohyeonie.”

Launching at the older girl, Yoohyeon hugs her tight. “I’m so so sorry, unnie!”

Jiu softly shushes the girl. “Like Sunny said…it wasn’t you, Yoohyeon.”

Surprised at hearing the nickname, Song-Sunny smiles at the leader. She steps back when the other girls speak up to support the former Princess. When she’s calmed down, Yoohyeon looks down at the dream catcher in her hand and laughs softly. “This is too cute.”

Smiling, Sunny passes the other ones out. Sua’s dream catcher has red feathers dangling from it. Sunny looks at Siyeon’s, smiling at the girl’s excitement over her dream catcher having dark and light blue feathers. Handong looks down at hers; black and white feathers in place. Dami lightly touches the white and yellow feather decorations of her dream catcher. Last, but not least, Gahyeon points at her pastel colored dream catcher.

“These will protect you, but you need them with you as often as you can. They can protect you from a distance, but only for so long,” Sunny explains.

“You never told us how you’re still alive,” Sua mentions, pointing to her shoulder in reference to the angel’s wound.

Smiling, Sunny shrugs. “That’s a bit much to explain after giving you guys the other truth. Besides, my story is a bit more complicated. Give yourselves some time to process, and when everyone is ready…I’ll tell you my story.”

Jiu sighs. “We’ve waited up long enough so let’s all go to bed. We’ve another show tomorrow.” She lets the others walk out of the room before turning to Sunny. “So…you remember everything about our life in that kingdom?”

“I do,” Sunny admits, blushing softly. “I just wanted you to know that I don’t expect anything.” She looks down at her hands. “I’m not sure how I feel, Jiu. I’ve felt a pull towards you since my first day on the job, but I don’t know if that was my mind telling me of our past or if it was the feelings resurfacing. I’m truly sorry if this makes things difficult for us working together. I’ll leave as soon as I’ve broken the curse and you’ll never have to hear or see me again.”

Jiu’s reply is soft, forcing Sunny to strain to hear her. “I don’t want that.”

“What?” Sunny questions in shock, looking at the idol leader.

“I don’t want you to disappear from our lives. You’re still our bodyguard, whom we’ve come to care so much about. I…” Jiu pauses. “I don’t know how I feel either, but I don’t want you gone from my life. You’ve already disappeared from it once, and I’d rather that not happen again.”

Sunny nods, smiling. “Well, I promise to stick around then, but you need to go to bed. I’ll be here in the morning.”

“Promise?” the oldest member sticks out her pinky.

Chuckling, Sunny links their pinkies together. “I promise.” The both see a flash of a vision. They face each other as they do now, but each is a child again. Pinkies linked; the children make their promise. The vision fades, leaving both with goofy smiles on their faces.

“Goodnight, Sunny.”

“Goodnight, Minji.”


	9. Part VIII

The next morning, Sunny wakes up before the rest of Dreamcatcher. She stretches in the bed before going to look in the cabinets. _Need to go shopping._ Walking back to the futon, she grabs a suit jacket from her bag of clothes. Pulling it on, she slips out of the dorm. Meanwhile, Jiu wakes up feeling more refreshed than she has in months. Her eyes land on the black and pink dream catcher above her head. She slides her fingers along the feathers, thinking they’re softer than any feather she’s felt before. Getting up, she washes her face before going to check on Sunny. Upon finding the futon empty, she panics, pacing the room. Thoughts on where the other went filter through her head. Did she give up on them? Did she leave to stop Solas? What could she do against a literal demon?

While lost in thought, Jiu fails to notice the door click open. She’s still pacing when Sunny walks into the room, hands full of bags of food. “Minji?” she questions, breaking the leader from her thoughts.

“Sunny!” she pulls the bodyguard into a hug, eyes wet with unshed tears. “I thought you left.” She steps back, noticing the bags. “What’s this?”

Sunny smiles, passing the leader and setting the food out. “I didn’t see much for breakfast in the pantry, so I went and got some groceries and breakfast. Sorry to worry you, I wanted to surprise everyone.”

Minji sighs in relief. “No, no. Thank you.” She blushes. “After last night…I thought you were having seconds thoughts about staying here.“

“Silly, I’m staying here so you better get used to me,” Sunny says, briefly grabbing the red head’s hand. She turns to the groceries, pulling food out to serve and putting the other stuff away. In the meantime, the others wake up upon smelling food. They all eat in comfortable silence. Sunny cleans the meal up when everyone’s finished, playfully being mad when they try to help. She shoos them to get ready as well, saying she’ll get everything cleared away. Once they’re done, the group is supposed to go a few hours’ drive away for a fansign event. The bodyguards follow the cars when they leave, keeping up with them. Sunny rides the motorcycle since she hasn’t had a chance to ride in a while. The event is fun for the girls and fans. Gifts are given to the girls as they chat with their fans. Sunny watches her surroundings, but there are times where her gaze meets Minji’s. They share a knowing smile meant only for them before their attention is taken elsewhere. _Now that we both remember that life…there’s a comfortable tension between us. Does she want this to go somewhere? What about her career? Same-sex relationship are still frowned upon here and what about my job? Will I be able to stay with her?_

Those thoughts plague Sunny for the rest of the day. She tries to focus, but the thought of leaving makes her stomach churn. By the time she’s calmed her thoughts, the event is over, and they head back home. The ride back is safe and uneventful. Upon arriving at the dorm, Sunny parks her bike before helping the girls out of the car. Zhang and Ryu keep watch around them. Once the girls are all out, Sunny turns away from the car at feeling multiple presences, only to put her arm out and stop Minji from walking further.

Several figures in cloaks stand between the front of the dorm building and where the idols are standing. _Not now._ She steps in front of the group, addressing the two bodyguards without looking away from the figures. “Ryu, Zhang, I know you’re going to want to stay, but I need you to take the girls somewhere else.”

“What?” Minji asks, looking between the figures and Sunny. She notices the glare the female guard gives them.

“Please do not argue,” Sunny says, taking a quick glance at Minji.

This proves to be a mistake as the figures use the momentary distraction to launch at the angel. Behind her, the group gasps as the cloaks fall away from the five figures, revealing a minotaur, a centaur, two griffins, and a cyclops. “What the f-“ Sua covers Siyeon’s mouth, stopping the profanity from coming out.

Taking several rapid steps, Sunny lifts her hand as a white energy orb forms in her hand. It extends out, creating a lance. Her eyes turn white as she launches the lance at the closest demon, a griffin. It screeches in pain, slamming into the pavement. The hit causes it to turn to dust on impact. Turning towards her friends, she points down the street towards the company building. “Go!”

Without being told twice, Ryu gets the girls to follow Zhang. He spares a glance at Sunny, too shocked to speak but still concerned. Minji tries to lag behind, but he grabs her arm, practically dragging her away. “No, Sunny!”

“I’ll be fine!” Sunny yells, turning her attention back to the demons. She smirks, white energy orbs forming in her hands. Throwing them at the creatures, she lets the distraction pull their attention away from her as she creates a bow and arrow with her power. She aims at the centaur as it tries to follow her girls. “Not so fast!” She fires the arrow at it, causing it to burst into dust. Her attention shifts to the other ground demons. She rushes at the cyclops, knowing it won’t be able to move swiftly enough. Sliding under it, she fires an arrow as it bends down to get her. With its sight gone, she creates two arrows. Firing them, she makes sure to create a connecting line between them. The arrows slice the creature’s head off, causing the head and body to crumble to dust. Her attention moves to the minotaur. “Another one of you, huh,” she says, rushing at it. The creature wields a large axe but swings it too hard for it to handle. With the weapon swung low and wide, Sunny jumps over it, turning her bow into a sword. She drives the sword into the creature’s back as she lands behind it. A roar comes from the creature. It turns abruptly, handle of the axe slamming into Sunny. She grunts, taking the hit into her body. Redirecting it into energy, she blasts the minotaur with its own energy, turning it to dust.

Down the streets, Sunny hears screams. _No!_ She barely thinks about flying before white wings spread from her back. The process of growing wings out of an angel’s back is usually painful, but her focus is solely on the others. She pushes off the ground, wings flapping once to get her into the air. The white wings flap, sending her towards dreamcatcher and the bodyguards. Sunny holds her hands at her sides, white energy orb coming to form. It stretches out, creating two swords in her grasp. She slams her body into the griffin that hovers in the way of her friends’ escape.

“Sunny!” Minji exclaims, surprised at the girl’s appearance.

Slamming the creature into the ground, Sunny stabs the blades of her swords into the creature’s chest, directly into its core. It screeches, but suddenly turns to dust, ending the sound. Standing back up, Sunny feels her wings stretch out behind her. _Sorry. You’ve been restrained for too long. The last time out wasn’t near long enough._ Taking a deep breath, the angel lets the air exit, causing her wings to flutter. Behind her, she hears a several voices of awe.

“Ohmygod,” Gahyeon breathes out.

“Sunny, you’re-“ Siyeon says.

“An angel,” Sua finishes.

Turning around, Sunny blushes as she scratches her neck nervously. “Ah, yeah,” she lets the girls come to her, knowing the wings would scare them with their quick movements.

“This is how you made the dream catchers,” Minji says, reaching out to touch the wings. She slides her hand down the feathers, feeling the same softness as the ones of their dream catchers.

“Ah, yeah,” Sunny admits. “The feathers of angel wings will repel demons if infused right.”

“You’re literally an angel,” Yoohyeon whispers in shock, hands clasped against her chest while the others touch Sunny’s wings after Minji did.

Reaching out, Sunny offers her hand. “I promise it doesn’t hurt,” she says. Carefully, Yoohyeon steps forward, letting Sunny move her hand to touch the wings.

The silver-haired girl gasps. She lets her fingers caress the feathers. Her eyes drift to Sunny’s. “Is this why you didn’t want to tell us?”

Nodding, Sunny glances at the others before letting her gaze land on Jiu’s. “I don’t reincarnate like your souls do. My choice to become an angel halted that process. I didn’t…want you guys to think that I…that I was just doing this because it’s my job as an angel.”

“Oh Sunny,” Minji grabs the angel’s hand. “We’d never think that.”

Smiling, Sunny closes her eyes, willing the wings to collapse. Her back arches as they return to their dormant state. Once they’re back in, Sunny grunts, slumping forward for a moment. “That’s not the most fun,” she admits.

Siyeon walks around the angel, touching Sunny’s back where her clothes have torn away to make room for the wings. “Where do they go?” she traces the scars left by the wings.

“It’s less of a spatial thing, but they fold in, storing themselves in my back.”

“Wicked,” Sua says, touching the other scar.

Ryu and Zhang approach the angel, awe in their expressions. It changes to content grins. “That was badass!” Ryu smacks Sunny’s back in addition to the comment.

“Very impressive,” Zhang adds.

“Thanks guys. Sorry I didn’t tell any of you before. I can promise you; this is the la-Wait.” Sunny taps her chin. “I do have one more surprise, but it’s not something I plan on using.”

“DO YOU HAVE A-“

Sua covers Siyeon’s mouth, shaking her head. “So not the time, Siyeonie.”

Pulling Sua’s hand down, Siyeon smiles her signature eye-smile. “What? I was just asking if she had some cool armor or a sword?” Her eyes widen as she looks as Sunny. “DO YOU HAVE A UNICORN?”

Sunny stares at the October born girl. Sua shakes her head, replying. “She’s serious.”

Laughing, the angel shakes her head in response. “No, but that’s be cool. I mean, I guess you could put an ice cream cone on my head and call me a unicorn.”

Siyeon’s eyes light up. “PLEASE CAN WE?”

Minji cuts in, hand grabbing Sunny’s. “Why don’t we all go back to the dorm and get some rest? Tomorrow’s a practice day for us.” At that moment, several of the girls’ yawn. They all agree, walking back to the dorm. Once inside, Sunny watches the girls retire to bed. Minji pulls her to the futon, sitting down and patting beside her. Sunny complies, letting them sit in silence until the leader is ready to talk. After a few minutes of playing with the angel’s fingers, Minji turns to her. “I-“ She stops, looking at their hands. A deep breath is released before she looks back at Sunny’s eyes. “When they attacked us and you told us to run, I thought something was going to happen to you. I didn’t want to run, but then your eyes were white.” She pauses. “I knew you were going to come back to us, but my initial thought was…” Minji trails off, eyes drifting away from Sunny’s. She feels Sunny comfortingly squeeze her hands. Looking back at the angel, Minji finally says it. “I just kept asking myself why I didn’t admit my feelings for you in the first place.” Sunny’s eyes widen. The leader continues, ranting. “I just didn’t want to ruin our friendship. That’s why I didn’t say anything when you mentioned it before. I wanted to have an understanding on your feels too, but then this happened, and I don’t even care if you do-“

Sunny reaches up with her right hand. She caresses the leader’s cheek, coaxing Minji to lean forward. Their lips touch in a brief, sensual kiss. Sunny pulls away, smiling at the lopsided grin on the leader’s face. “I was afraid something would happen if I didn’t try to fight back.”

Minji wraps her arms around the angel. They hug for a while before Sunny feels Minji’s breathing steady out. She carefully moves so that the leader is laying on the futon. Climbing in beside her, Sunny smiles when the oldest member curls against the angel, breath soft against her neck. Wrapping an arm around Minji, Sunny lets herself fall asleep. None of the girls have nightmares that night.


	10. Part IX

For the last several weeks, Sunny has spent most of her time with Dreamcatcher, accompanying them on their comeback performances, show appearances, and fan events. In between that, she’s gone out every night in search of Solas, but hasn’t located him. She even visited the music program, The Show, where she first encountered him. Again, he was nowhere to be found. This has led up to today, the day Dreamcatcher appears on Fact in Star.

The bodyguards stay out of the dressing room as the girls are filmed playing games and overall messing around. Ryu smacks his hand against Sunny’s back. “So what else can you do with…” He gestures his hands wildly, trying to mimic an orb.

Chuckling, Sunny glances around, rubbing her hands together. Seeing the hallway clear, she snaps the fingers of her right hand against her left. There’s a spark, followed by a flame starting to burn from her palms. She closes her palm, snuffing the flame out. Zhang smirks at the awe on Ryu’s face. “Impressive, Sunny.” After revealing everything to the two guards, they started calling her Sunny. She admitted to being an angel and explained how that works.

The door to the dressing room swings open. Sua, Siyeon, and Dami walk out first, followed by Gahyeon and Handong. Yoohyeon follows behind those two, smiling at Sunny. She points inside the room. “We made sure all the cameras were off, unnie.”

Walking past the Korean, Sunny lightly touches the girl’s wrist. “Thank you, Yoohyeonie.” After everything that’s been revealed, Yoohyeon and Sunny have become close friends with the former taking the bodyguard’s offer up to talk. Anytime Yoohyeon feels particularly stressed about something Solas has said…she goes to Sunny, too afraid to talk to her group about it. _She once told me that she didn’t want to scare the group into thinking that she was about to betray them. Yoohyeon’s too sweet to suffer from this curse anymore. I just have to fi-Fuck._ Walking into the room, Sunny quickly pulls Minji into a tight hug.

“Sun-“

“Sorry, babe.” Wrapping her arms around the red head, she presses her lips to the leader’s. “I can feel him nearby. This is the first time in weeks.”

Minji’s eyes widen. “We’re about to go do the show.” She grabs Sunny’s hands, intertwining their fingers. “Will you be okay?”

Kissing the red head once more, Sunny pulls away with a confident smile. “I’ll be fine!” She reaches up, caressing the leader’s cheeks. “You focus on enjoying yourself, okay?” The bodyguard pulls away, bowing as she steps back. When she looks up, she sees the wet sheen to the other girl’s eyes. “Hey, hey, hey. It’s gonna be okay. Stopping him is gonna give you and the girls their happiness back.”

Minji smiles. “You’re my happiness too, Sunny.”

Standing up straight, the angel hugs her love. “I love you, Minji.”

“I love you too, Sunny.” Finally pulling away from the leader, Sunny quickly walks out of the room. Ryu and Zhang question her, but Minji’s voice stops them. “She’s going after Solas.” The two men nod, following the leader out to the main stage. Once she’s in position with the other members, she puts on a smiling face. The others question her, but she shakes her head as the beginning notes of their song.

Meanwhile, Sunny leaves the building. As soon as she walks out, thunder rumbles above. She looks up, only to feel something slam into her. Rolling to a stop, she looks up from her crouched position. Solas stands up for slamming into her. He smirks at her. Sunny watches smoke pour from his hands, wrapping around his body. When Solas walks out of the smoke, he stands several inches taller in a suit of black armor. She growls, recognizing the armor from his time as a knight in Princess Yoohyeon’s army.

“Well, well, I’m glad you’ve left the building, Sunny. I’d hate to tear it down and you survive, but your precious friends die.”

Standing up, Sunny focuses on something she hasn’t used since her first century as an angel. She looks up at the rumble of thunder. A flash of red and orange lightning strikes the ground where the angel stands. When the dust and light clears, Sunny stands in her own suit of armor. While Solas’ armor is black with purple accents and emits smoke, Sunny’s has a silver base with red and orange accents. Staring the demon down, Sunny speaks up. “Let’s finish this, Solas.”

The demon chuckles, smirking. “Agreed.”

The two launch at one another. Swords appear in their hands, clashing when they get close. Solas dodges a swipe from Sunny, who blocks the demon’s sword when he follows up. Energy orbs and smoke orbs are thrown at each other. Aside from the marks on their armor, neither show signs of slowing down. Sunny spreads her wings, taking the battle into the sky. Solas follows, bat-like wings stretching from his back. With thunder roaring overhead and the unnaturally colored lightning in the sky, the two find this terrain harder to fight in.

“Enough!” Solas roars, armor cracking apart as the demon turns into his true form. Body increasing in size, Sunny retreats when she sees the dragon in front of her. _Well shit._

The creature’s tail swings out, sending Sunny flying back. Her wings flap, helping right herself. She looks up in time to see a ball of blood red fire, with smoke coming around it, fly at her. Failing to dodge, she yells in pain from the demonic fire burning at her armor. She feels parts of the armor melt as she loses altitude. Her vision darkens as sends waves of smoke to block her sight. She hears his voice around her.

“You will lose. The cycle will never be broken.”

Looking around her for a way out, Sunny sees nothing but darkness. She can still feel her body falling to the ground, but with no sight, she’s unable to determine which was way is what. _I must get out!_ Suddenly, a bright light cuts through the darkness. Sunny looks out at the night sky peeking through. She gasps upon seeing a transparent figure float to her. When the figure gets closer, panic seizes Sunny’s heart.

“Minji,” she says, tears threatening to fall.

The transparent form of Minji reaches out, allowing Sunny to take her hand. Hands together, the bright light flashes, dispersing the shadows around them. Minji floats down in front of the angel. “Do not fret, Sunny,” she says, resting a hand on the angel’s cheek. “I am just a form of her. Your Minji is still at the show, but she isn’t quite focused while I’m here.”

“General,” Sunny whispers in realization.

Nodding, the general smiles. “You were always attuned to things, Sunny.” She looks over at Solas as he flies at them. “We do not have much time.” She presses her lips to the angel’s. “You must take on your true form, Sunny.”

“My…true form?” _What does she mean? I have no recollection or knowledge of that._

“You haven’t needed to access that part of you yet, but it’s time now.”

Seeing the general start to fade away, Sunny tries to pull her back. “Don’t leave. Wait.”

“I’ll always be by your side, Sunny,” she says, pushing herself away from the angel.

Once the apparition is gone, the angel turns to Solas as he gets closer. She closes her eyes. _Focus. Whatever I’m supposed to be. Focus, Sunny. This for you…this is for Dami, Gahyeon, Siyeon, Sua, Handong, Yoohyeon, and Minji…all who suffered through this demon’s curse._ Sunny’s eyes open, glowing completely white. _They won’t suffer any longer._ Sunny’s body catches fire, melting her armor off her body. She turns completely into this fire as it changes shape. The light from Sunny causes Solas to stop in his attack, blinded by it. When Solas looks at the angel, he notices the flaming bird in her place. _In the Midst of Darkness, like a ray of light, you took my hand._ The words echo in Sunny’s head.

“A phoenix,” he says in shock as it’s the rarest of mythical creatures an angel or demon can turn into it.

Fear settles in the demon’s eyes, but with no other choice, he launches back at the phoenix. Sunny, blinded by instinct, attacks Solas. He tries to dodge, but the bird’s claws clamp onto the dragon’s legs. With the dragon in its hold, the phoenix flies higher into the sky, throwing it into the upper atmosphere. Back below the clouds, the residents of Seoul watch the lightning change colors. Each flash is synced with the hits the phoenix lands. The citizens watch the red and orange lightning spark in the sky. The phoenix attacks once more, claws digging into the dragon’s wings. It’s beak nips at the dragon’s body, leaving bloody punctures. The phoenix lets out a triumphant cry as her body heats up. Flames spark off her body, sticking to the dragon. As the phoenix’s form consumes the dragon’s, Solas can do nothing but roar in pain. A massive explosion comes from inside the form.

Down below, Ryu and Zhang watch the explosion from the rooftop of the building Dreamcatcher is in. Both share a look before running down multiple flights of stairs. They stop in the show room, watching Dreamcatcher end the show. When the cameras stop rolling, the two rush the idols back to their dressing room, to the girls’ confusion. The guys explain what they saw, sadly explaining both Solas’ death and the death of their friend, Sunny.

The night sky above Seoul is the clearest anyone’s ever seen. Stars shine through the light pollution giving the people a chance to see the sky in its natural state. Ashes fall from the sky, collecting themselves atop one of the building. It takes hours for them to collect there, but once they’re all together the ashes raise up, taking the form of a body. Once the body is form, the black ash falls to the ground, revealing Sunny. She takes in a gasp of air, looking at her hands. _Rises from the ashes._ She notices her lack of clothing and frowns, summoning her armor. It reappears without a scratch on it, allowing Sunny to sneak down to the Fact in Star dressing room. She finds it empty, causing her to panic. _How long was I gone?_

Going to the clothing area of the show, Sunny takes what she can find, a pair of black pants and, ironically enough, a black shirt with Dreamcatcher’s symbol on it. She leaves the building, sprinting to the dorm. Her hands shake as she pushes in the code to the door. As soon as she opens the door, she hears sobs break out inside. Rushing inside, she stops short at seeing the two bodyguards with their heads bowed and the seven girls clinging to each other. Sua and Siyeon cuddle against each other, eyes staring at Sunny in shock. Handong comforts Dami and Gahyeon, rubbing their backs as they hold hands with ease. Sunny’s eyes land on Minji, who clings to Yoohyeon, face hidden in the younger girl’s shoulder. Yoohyeon has her face pressed against the leader’s head, using the red hair to hide her expression.

“What’s going on?” Sunny asks, concern immediately taking over as she rushes to Yoohyeon and Minji. She kneels in front of them, clasping both of their hands in her own.

The two Koreans look up at the angel in shock. They don’t give her a chance to say anything else, shouting at her and wrapping their arms around her. Sunny returns the hug as sobs from the two are heard. Ryu is the one that speaks up to explain despite still being shocked at the angel’s return.

“We saw you and Solas fighting. After the explosion…we assumed you died,” he admits before bowing with Zhang. “We’re sorry!” They both apologize.

Nodding, Sunny turns back to the two in her arms. “Hey,” she coaxes softly. “I’m here. I’m back.”

Yoohyeon recovers first, pulling away. She looks at the angel with messy hair and red rimmed eyes. “We thought we’d never see you again.” Her eyes rewet with new tears, but Sunny reaches up with her right hand, other wrapped around Minji, and wipes the younger girl’s tears.

“I’m sorry, Yoohyeonie,” Sunny bows her head in apology. “I should’ve been more care.” She wipes the last of the fallen tears as Minji lifts her head to look at Sunny, who turns her head to the leader. The corners of the angel’s lips lower into a frown. “I’m sorry for worrying you, but I won’t be going anywhere else this time.”

Minji pouts, eyes still wet from tears. “You better not.”

A soft chuckle escapes Sunny’s mouth. Minji looks behind her before pulling away. Sunny reaches for her, but several bodies slam against her. She laughs, meeting the smiling eyes the leader sends her way. The other members hold Sunny’s body and hands, telling her how happy they are that she’s back. Without hesitation, the angel agrees with them. The remainder of the night, the group gets told everything that happened, finally learning why Minji zoned out while on the Fact in Star show. They spend the night eating and watching movies before falling asleep on the couch and futon. Sua and Siyeon fall asleep, cuddling against one another while Handong has Gahyeon on her lap and Dami’s head against her shoulder. Sunny sleeps on futon with Minji’s legs intertwined with hers while the angel has her arms around the leader. Yoohyeon cuddles with her forehead against the angel’s back. It’s the first night in months that all the girls sleep through the whole night without waking up from nightmares or insomnia.


	11. Epilogue

Together, they look at the computer screen. Minji’s hands hold Sunny’s left hand while the right hovers over the keyboard. “Are we sure about this?” Sunny hesitantly asks, looking around at the seven members and the staff. She looks back at the screen, face full of concern and fear.

The staff nod, letting the members of Dreamcatcher decide. “I think I speak for all of us when I say that we’re sure,” Yoohyeon says after glancing at her members, earning nods from them.

Sunny looks at the younger girl, seeing the clear look in the girl’s eyes. _She’s been so much happier since the curse was broken. There was always this film over her eyes, even before she knew about the curse itself._ Smiling at the girl, Sunny shifts her gaze back to the computer screen. She hits enter before she can let doubt creep back in. The screen flashes as the words ‘video uploaded’ appear.

“I know Déjà Vu will be a success,” Minji says to the angel.

Smiling softly, Sunny nods. She squeezes the leader’s hands, gazing unabashed at her love. “Thank you for making it.” Siyeon pumps her fist, making a loud grunt of approval. This prompts the group to burst into laughter. They wipe the tears that formed and turn to watch the views come in. No matter what, the group silently vow that no matter how the song and music video do…they know that it was made for the themselves.


End file.
